Project Masam has announced that its demining teams have now located and destroyed a total of 506,437 explosive devices in Yemen’s liberated areas since the project’s launch in mid-2018.
This total includes 6,823 anti-personnel mines, 146,908 anti-tank mines, 344,461 items of unexploded ordnance (UXO), and 8,245 improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Clearance operations have covered over 68,508,830 square metres of land to date.
Since the escalation of the conflict between Yemen’s pro-government forces and Houthi militias in 2014, vast areas of the country have been heavily contaminated with landmines, UXO, and other remnants of war – particularly in strategic regions where the Houthis have planted an estimated one to two million mines.
During the most recent reporting week (12 – 18 July 2025), Project Masam’s deminers removed 971 explosive devices, including one anti-personnel mine, 78 anti-tank mines, 891 UXO, and one IED, while clearing 169,910 square metres of land.
This followed a productive prior week (5–11 July 2025), in which teams cleared 191,469 square metres and removed 1,171 explosive devices, including one anti-personnel mine, 46 anti-tank mines, and 1,124 UXO. No IEDs were found during that week.
Project Masam continues to focus its humanitarian mission on clearing land in civilian areas – villages, roads, schools, and other infrastructure – ensuring safer movement for people and aid workers alike.
It is estimated that up to five million Yemenis have been displaced since the start of the war, many driven from their homes by the presence of deadly landmines and unexploded ordnance.
In recent weeks, seasonal sand and dust storms have increased risks for displaced communities. These storms, which recently affected over 21,000 families in 73 displacement sites, reduce visibility and heighten the threat of accidental encounters with landmines, particularly in contaminated zones where clearance is ongoing.
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